1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tamper-proof molded article and an accelerator apparatus having the same.
2. Description of Related Art
A snap-fit structure is known as a structure, which connects resiliently deformable components (e.g., resin components) together. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-239920A teaches such a snap-fit structure, in which a claw of one component is engaged with a recess of the other component to enable easy connection between the one component and the other component.
For example, in a case of an accelerator apparatus of a vehicle, which is provided to control an operational state of an engine, it is not desirable to allow a user to disassemble the accelerator apparatus upon assembling thereof. In such an apparatus, it is demanded to implement a tamper-proof function to leave a disassembly indication mark, which is a mark that indicates the fact of the disassembling of the accelerator apparatus. In a case of a previously proposed accelerator apparatus, components are connected together through, for example, forceful plastic bending or deforming of one component against the other component upon application of heat thereof to soften the same, thereby implementing the tamper-proof function. However, in such a case, the number of assembling steps is increased. Furthermore, in the case of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-239920A, the assembling operation of the components is easy. However, the disassembly indication mark cannot be left on the accelerator apparatus, so that the tamper-proof function cannot be implemented.